Gouda & Roasted Red Pepper Soup
Oven or alternative broiler
Medium-size or larger pot
Cookie sheet or other oven-safe pan
4 large red bell peppers, halved and seeded
2 roma tomatoes, seeded and cut in half lengthways
1 medium yellow onion, diced
3.5 cups vegetable stock (or water, I usually just use water but I had vegetable stock from a friend so)
8 oz gouda cheese, shredded (~3 cups)
2 tsp Creole seasoning (or all the spices it is composed of: paprika, salt, onion & garlic powders, oregano, basil, thyme, and black, white, and cayenne peppers - google a recipe for ratio)
1 tsp acid (lemon juice or apple cider vinegar recommended)
Salt to taste (I added ~1 extra tsp)
Preheat your broiler to it's highest setting. Place pepper and tomato halves skin-side up on your pan. Broil 12-15 min (until the skins are blistered and blackened), rotating the pan about halfway through. Once done, transfer to a bowl and cover until cool enough to handle. Once cooled, peel off skins and slice flesh into strips.
Heat the olive oil in your pot over medium heat. Add the onion and let cook ~7-8 min, then add the garlic and cook until the onion is translucent and the garlic is lightly browned.
To the pot, add the roasted peppers & tomatoes, paprika, black pepper, and broth/water. Bring to a gentle boil, reduce heat, and let simmer 8 min.
Blend soup with an immersion blender until smooth, then remove from heat.
Mix in remaining ingredients - shredded gouda, milk, Creole seasoning, basil, oregano, and acid, and keep mixing until the cheese has melted. I also used the immersion blender in this step, but make sure you regularly check to make sure it's not getting gunked up & overheating bc of the cheese
Serve with a drizzle of olive oil, and bread or croutons
